The UEFA European Under-18 Championship 1978 Final Tournament was held in Poland. It also served as the European qualification for the 1979 FIFA World Youth Championship.
| Tournament details | |
|---|---|
| Host country | Poland |
| Dates | 5–14 May |
| Teams | 16 |
| Final positions | |
| Champions |  Soviet Union (4th title) |
| Runners-up |  Yugoslavia |
| Third place |  Poland |
| Fourth place |  Scotland |
Qualification edit
Group 1 edit
| Teams | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 Hungary
|
4 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 6 | 2 | +4 | 5 |
 Czechoslovakia
|
4 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 8 | 6 | +2 | 5 |
 Sweden
|
4 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 5 | 11 | –6 | 2 |
| Sweden
|
1–0 | Hungary
| |
| Sweden
|
2–4 | Czechoslovakia
| |
| Hungary
|
4–0 | Sweden
| |
| Czechoslovakia
|
1–1 | Hungary
| |
| Czechoslovakia
|
3–2 | Sweden
| |
| Hungary
|
1–0 | Czechoslovakia
|
Group 4 edit
| Teams | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 Netherlands
|
4 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 7 | 3 | +4 | 6 |
 Finland
|
4 | 0 | 3 | 1 | 4 | 6 | –2 | 3 |
 Republic of Ireland
|
4 | 0 | 3 | 1 | 3 | 5 | –2 | 3 |
| Finland
|
2–2 | Republic of Ireland
| |
| Finland
|
1–1 | Netherlands
| |
| Netherlands
|
3–1 | Republic of Ireland
| |
| Republic of Ireland
|
0–0 | Netherlands
| |
| Netherlands
|
3–1 | Finland
| |
| Republic of Ireland
|
0–0 | Finland
|
Other groups edit
| Team 1 | Agg. | Team 2 | 1st leg | 2nd leg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Denmark 
|
0–3 | Scotland
|
0–2 | 0–1 |
Iceland 
|
2–1 |  Wales
|
1–1 | 1–0 |
Belgium 
|
9–2 |  Northern Ireland
|
4–1 | 5–1 |
England 
|
3–1 |  France
|
3–1 | 0–0 |
Liechtenstein 
|
1–13 |  Italy
|
0–6 | 1–7 |
Luxembourg 
|
1–6 |  Portugal
|
1–4 | 0–2 |
West Germany 
|
4–0 |  Switzerland
|
2–0 | 2–0 |
Malta 
|
0–2 |  Spain
|
0–2 | 0–0 |
Greece 
|
2–2 (3–2p) |  East Germany
|
1–1 | 1–1 |
Bulgaria 
|
2–4 |  Turkey
|
2–1 | 0–3 |
| Yugoslavia
|
4–0 |  Romania
|
2–0 | 2–0 |
Austria 
|
0–2 | Soviet Union
|
0–2 | 0–0 |
Teams edit
The following teams qualified for the tournament:
Belgium
England
West Germany
Greece
Hungary
Iceland
Italy
Netherlands
Norway (received Bye for qualifying stage)
Poland (host)
Portugal
Scotland
Soviet Union
Spain
Turkey
Yugoslavia
Squads edit
Group stage edit
Group A edit
| Teams | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Scotland
|
3 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 0 | +2 | 5 |
| Portugal
|
3 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 3 |
| West Germany
|
3 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 5 | 5 | 0 | 2 |
| Italy
|
3 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 3 | 5 | –2 | 2 |
| 5 May | Italy
|
0–0 | Portugal
|
| Scotland
|
1–0 | West Germany
| |
| 7 May | Scotland
|
1–0 | Portugal
|
| West Germany
|
5–3 | Italy
| |
| 9 May | Scotland
|
0–0 | Italy
|
| Portugal
|
1–0 | West Germany
|
Group B edit
| Teams | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Soviet Union
|
3 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 10 | 0 | +10 | 6 |
| Netherlands
|
3 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 4 | –1 | 3 |
 Norway
|
3 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 6 | –4 | 2 |
| Greece
|
3 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 8 | –5 | 1 |
| 5 May | Soviet Union
|
4–0 | Greece
|
| Netherlands
|
1–0 | Norway
| |
| 7 May | Netherlands
|
2–2 | Greece
|
| Soviet Union
|
4–0 | Norway
| |
| 9 May | Soviet Union
|
2–0 | Netherlands
|
| Norway
|
2–1 | Greece
|
Group C edit
| Teams | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Yugoslavia
|
2 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 4 | 1 | +3 | 3 |
| Hungary
|
2 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 1 | +2 | 3 |
| Iceland
|
2 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 7 | –5 | 0 |
| Belgium
|
Withdrew due to food poisoning | |||||||
| 5 May | Hungary
|
3–1 | Iceland
|
| Yugoslavia
|
ABD1 | Belgium
| |
| 7 May | Hungary
|
0–0 | Yugoslavia
|
| 9 May | Yugoslavia
|
4–1 | Iceland
|
| 1After their first match was abandoned at 2-1, Belgium withdrew from the tournament. The team was suffering from food poisoning. Their results were annulled. | |||
Group D edit
| Teams | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Poland
|
3 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 5 | 3 | +2 | 4 |
| Spain
|
3 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 3 | 0 | 3 |
| England
|
3 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 3 | –1 | 3 |
| Turkey
|
3 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 3 | 4 | –1 | 2 |
| 5 May | England
|
1–1 | Turkey
|
| Spain
|
2–1 | Poland
| |
| 7 May | England
|
1–0 | Spain
|
| Poland
|
2–1 | Turkey
| |
| 9 May | Poland
|
2–0 | England
|
| Spain
|
1–1 | Turkey
|
Semifinals edit
| Yugoslavia | 2 – 2 | Scotland |
|---|---|---|
| Report | ||
| Penalties | ||
| 4 – 2 | ||
| Soviet Union | 2 – 0 | Poland |
|---|---|---|
| Report |
Third place match edit
Final edit
| 1978 UEFA European Under-18 Championship |
|---|
 Soviet Union Fourth title |
Qualification to World Youth Championship edit
The six best performing teams qualified for the 1979 FIFA World Youth Championship: four semifinalists and the best group runners-up (based on goal difference). For an unknown reason, semifinalists Scotland did not participate.